Department for Transport

High Speed 2 Line: Construction

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Golborne Spur will be removed from HS2 plans.

Andrew Stephenson: We are considering the recommendations of the Union Connectivity Review, including whether to review options for alternative connections between HS2 and the West Coast Main Line.

Bus Services: Disability

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on the provision of audio and visual equipment on all buses.

Wendy Morton: The Bus Services Act 2017 amended the Equality Act 2010 to include powers to require the provision of audible and visible information onboard local services in Great Britain. In the 2021 National Bus Strategy, we affirmed our commitment to mandating such provision, and we intend to lay Regulations later this year. In the meantime, we welcome the efforts of operators introducing audible and visible information in anticipation of the new requirement, with 49% of local buses now incorporating it.To support small operators to comply with the Regulations, the government has allocated £3.5 million to the Real Time Information Group (RTIG) to distribute to those operators that most need it.

Shipping: Redundancy

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what policy objectives his Department intended to achieve through The Seafarers (Transnational Information and Consultation, Collective Redundancies and Insolvency Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2018 (S.I. 2018/26), in relation to the enforcement of employers' duty to notify authorities of an intention to dismiss workers as redundant.

Robert Courts: These regulations were introduced to implement EU Directive 2015/1794 (Seafarers). The UK was required to implement this Directive as a member of the European Union.The regulations introduce the requirement on shipping companies to inform the competent authorities of the flag State of seafarer redundancies. The period in which such notice should be given is 45 days’ notice where there are 100 or more redundancies planned. This gives the authorities an opportunity to engage with employer and employees to identify what assistance can be provided.The Government is strongly committed protecting UK seafarers and those who work in UK waters continue to be protected by National Minimum Wage laws despite the 2018 legal change. The Secretary of State made a statement in Parliament on Wednesday 30 March regarding a further package of measures the UK Government is introducing to ensure there is no repeat of P&O Ferries actions.

Attorney General

Distributive Trade: Theft

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney General, how many CPS prosecutions there have been to date for the theft of goods by customers from retail and wholesale premises that took place in the financial years (a) 2017/18 and (b) 2020/21.

Alex Chalk: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of prosecutions for thefts from retail or wholesale premises. This information could only be obtained by an examination of CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost. While the CPS does not centrally collate data showing the number of people prosecuted for thefts from shops, data is available showing the number of offences of shop theft, charged by way of Section 1 of the Theft Act 1968, in which a prosecution commenced at magistrates’ courts. The table below provides this information for the years 2017-18 and 2020-21.  2017-20182020-2021Theft Act 1968 {1(1) and 7} - Theft from shops101,43547,601Data Source: CPS Case Management Information System  The figures relate to the number of offences and not the number of individual defendants. It may be the case that an individual defendant is charged with more than one offence. No data are held on the final outcome or if the charged offence was the substantive charge at finalisation.

Retail Trade: Crimes of Violence

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney General, how many CPS prosecutions there have been as of 30 March 2022 for assaults and threats against shop workers and owners that took place in the financial years (a) 2017-18 and (b) 2020-21.

Alex Chalk: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of prosecutions based on the occupation of complainants, including shopworkers who were assaulted or threatened. This information could only be obtained by an examination of CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.

Attorney General: Apprentices

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney General, with reference to the Public Sector Apprenticeships Target, how many apprentices were employed in (a) her office, (b) the Government Legal Department, and (c) the Crown Prosecution Service in the financial year 2021-22; and what proportion of the overall workforce did that represent in each case.

Alex Chalk: The Attorney General Office are working with the Government Legal Department and Crown Prosecution Service to finalise data on apprenticeships for 2021/22. Final figures are not yet available. The Cabinet Office, on behalf of the Civil Service, will be publishing a full breakdown of departmental performance on apprenticeships in the Autumn in line with previous years. Data for all departments between 2017 and 2021 is available on gov.uk and shows the Attorney Generals departments recruited 278 apprentices, equivalent to 3.2% during 2020/21.

Department of Health and Social Care

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has asked the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation to provide advice on the use of the Novavax covid-19 vaccine in the UK vaccination programme.

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the availability of the vaccine Novovax across the UK.

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to answer Question 134034, tabled by the hon. Member for Bristol West, on 3 March 2022.

Maggie Throup: There are several safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines already in deployment the United Kingdom. The Government will continue to be guided by the advice of the independent Joint Committee of Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) on which vaccines should be deployed in the UK’s vaccination programmes. The JCVI has discussed the potential use of Novavax’s COVID-19 vaccine (Nuvaxovid) in the national vaccination programme. Its considerations will be published in due course and kept under review.

Coronavirus: Screening

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will make an assessment of the (a) availability of free covid-19 lateral flow tests and (b) functioning of the Government's webpage to order those tests during the (i) week and (ii) day prior to the end of the free provision of those tests on 1 April 2022.

Maggie Throup: Prior to 1 April 2022, the Government asked the general public to order or collect test kits only if eligible for new COVID-19 treatments, working or volunteering in a high risk setting or supporting people at higher risk from COVID-19. To ensure an even distribution of lateral flow device tests, one pack of seven tests could be ordered from GOV.UK within a 72 hour period. While tests may have been temporarily unavailable to manage capacity, availability was refreshed regularly.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason medical assessors are required to assess evidence establishing a link between a covid-19 vaccine and the death of an individual when a coroner's verdict has established that a covid-19 vaccination was the cause of that individual's death.

Maggie Throup: The Government’s obligations in assessing a claim are set out in the Vaccine Damage Payment Act 1979. The Act requires that each claim is assessed using the evolving evidence with complete medical records for the claimant in order to reach a decision.

Food: Labelling

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to assess the impact of the Government's new calorie labelling requirements on people with eating disorders; and whether he will keep the policy under review.

Maggie Throup: The Department published an impact assessment and an equalities impact assessment on the likely effect of the policy. As part of these assessments, we have considered the available evidence around eating disorders and displaying calorie information. The Department will continue to evaluate the impact of the out of home calorie labelling Regulations, including on people living with eating disorders. We will review the Regulations and publish a post-implementation review within three to five years.

Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, on what date the NHS Business Services Authority awarded the contract for a supplier to cover medical assessments of claims under the Vaccine Damage Payments Scheme; what the commencement date is of that contract; how many medical assessors will be employed under that contract; and what the key performance requirements are of that contract .

Maggie Throup: The contract was awarded on 21 March 2022. The supplier is establishing its systems and staff to commence assessments as soon as possible. However, medical assessments for each claim can only proceed once the NHS Business Services Authority receives full medical records from a claimant’s general practitioner, medical providers, local authorities and other relevant healthcare providers.Under this contract, the number of medical assessors appointed to assess claims to the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme is managed by the supplier and will be flexible to meet the needs of the Scheme. The key performance requirements in the contract include:- medical assessments being compliant with clinical governance standards;- the provision of full outcome reports for each claim assessed, including rationale; and- claim assessment targets based on the fluctuating demands on the scheme.

Public Health

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what methods he uses to measure the success of public health interventions.

Maggie Throup: The Public Health Outcomes Framework (PHOF) sets out a national and local overview of public health outcomes supported by the following indicators:- Improving the wider determinants of health;- Health improvement;- Health protection; and- Healthcare public health and preventing premature mortality.The PHOF is used as a tool for local transparency and accountability and provides a means of benchmarking progress within and across local authorities.Where the Department undertakes its own evaluation of specific policies and programmes, the appropriate methods are set out in central guidance. This states that consideration of the return on investment of alternative interventions “should include social value and social costs, such as employment, health, wellbeing and productivity where possible”.The Department also invests in research and development via the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The NIHR invests over £33 million a year in a dedicated Policy Research Programme, which delivers evidence to inform policy development and implementation, including the evaluation of policies and pilots and research to fill longer-term evidence requirements.

Genito-urinary Medicine

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if the Government’s upcoming sexual and reproductive health strategy will reflect the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV's guidelines on including targets for all patients to receive a sexual health appointment within 48 hours of contacting a clinic; and if he will make a statement.

Maggie Throup: The current service specification for sexual and reproductive health services includes a quality outcome indicator to monitor the percentage of people contacting a service who are offered to be seen or assessed with an appointment or as a ‘walk-in’ within two working days of first contacting the service. The sexual and reproductive health strategy will set out commitments to ensure services continue to meet the needs of the local population.

Smoking: Health Education

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, in the context of the 2030 smoke-free target, what plans he has to improve smokers’ awareness of (a) e-cigarettes, (b) heat-not-burn products and (c) nicotine pouches.

Maggie Throup: A new Tobacco Control Plan will set out policy proposals and supporting regulatory changes to meet the Smokefree 2030 ambition. This will include new measures to improve smokers’ awareness of alternative and less harmful nicotine products such as e-cigarettes. Measures on nicotine pouches and heated tobacco products will also be included in the Plan. The Plan is due to be published later this year.

Coronavirus: Screening

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people who have not received free priority covid-19 PCR tests are able to access them.

Maggie Throup: Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test kits are now being used to support disease surveillance efforts rather than for diagnostic and treatment access. Patients who are prescribed a treatment will be asked to voluntarily take a PCR test before and after their treatment. COVID Medicines Delivery Units will provide instructions to patients on testing and how to receive a PCR test kit.Patients at higher risk of serious illness from COVID-19 and who are eligible for community treatments will continue to have access to free lateral flow device (LFD) tests. These patients have been issued with a pack of LFD tests should they become symptomatic, to ensure these patients receive treatments as soon as possible after symptom onset, when it is most likely to be effective. Individuals who may be eligible for a LFD test kit should contact 119 for advice. Patients who have already received a kit will be advised how to reorder further tests through GOV.UK or 119.

Genito-urinary Medicine

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that (a) equitable progress is made for all people at risk of poor sexual health and (b)  the needs of all people are met in its upcoming sexual and reproductive health strategy.

Maggie Throup: On 1 December 2021, we published the HIV Action Plan to achieve zero new HIV infections by 2030. This includes ensuring that black African and other underserved populations benefit equally from improvements in HIV outcomes.The forthcoming sexual and reproductive health strategy will set out plans to improve sexual and reproductive health outcomes and wellbeing for the whole population, including addressing disparities in sexual and reproductive health. The strategy will be published later this year.

Sexually Transmitted Infections: Disease Control

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if the Government will commit to the World Health Organisation's target of ending sexually transmitted infection epidemics as a public health threat by 2030 in its upcoming sexual and reproductive health strategy; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Government’s upcoming sexual and reproductive health strategy will include targets to reduce the incidence of (a) syphilis, (b) gonorrhoea and (c) chlamydia; and if he will make a statement.

Maggie Throup: The forthcoming sexual and reproductive health strategy for England will set out plans to improve sexual and reproductive health outcomes and wellbeing, including tackling sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The strategy will focus on reducing the harms associated with STIs, reducing the incidence and adverse outcomes such as stillbirths or infertility and tackling stigma, morbidity and mortality. As part of the strategy’s development, we are considering various goals including those proposed by the World Health Organization, related to the control of STIs.

Bowel Cancer: Screening

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the outcomes were of the detailed modelling assessment of endoscopy capacity and demand within the bowel cancer screening programme.

Maria Caulfield: NHS England and NHS Improvement have advised that the modelling of endoscopy capacity and demand for the NHS Bowel Screening Programme has been completed and its outcomes are currently under review. Initial data was shared with regional public health commissioning teams to support the age extension to the Bowel Screening Programme over the next three years.

Breast Cancer: Diagnosis

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the proportion of urgent referrals for suspected breast cancer that met the 28 day faster diagnosis standard was (a) in general and (b) according to diagnosis outcome in each month for the last year.

Maria Caulfield: The following table shows the proportion of referrals in England for suspected breast cancer within the 28 day faster diagnosis standard between April 2021 and January 2022, the most recent data available. Data by diagnostic outcome is not collected.April 202188.8%May 202188.8%June 202188.2%July 202191.7%August 202191.5%September 202193.2%October 202192.5%November 202186.9%December 202181.0%January 202274.5%February 202285.0% Source: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/cancer-waiting-times/In the latter half of 2021, there was an increase in the number of referrals for breast cancer. This increase led to a subsequent decrease in performance in January 2022, due to the impact of the Christmas and New Year period.

Walking

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the health benefits of the daily mile.

Maggie Throup: In March 2020, the former Public Health England assessed the health benefits of schools’ active mile initiatives, which included the Daily Mile. The review indicated that the initiatives provide a simple, inclusive physical activity opportunity suitable for all school age children and are appealing as a means of providing regular physical activity. It can make a contribution to the in-school delivery of 30 Active Minutes and the Chief Medical Officers’ recommendation of an average of at least 60 minutes of physical activity each day and can contribute to children’s health and wellbeing if implemented as part of a whole school approach to physical activity. These activities should provide an additional opportunity to be active during the school day and are not equivalent to and should not replace physical education.

Coronavirus: Drugs

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for its policies of reports of clinically vulnerable, clinically extremely vulnerable and immunosuppressed people experiencing challenges in accessing antiviral or retroviral treatments.

Maggie Throup: The National Health Service is aware of some local issues and continues to support general practitioners, NHS 111 and hospital specialists to assist eligible patients to access an urgent assessment for these treatments by COVID-19 Medicine Delivery Units (CMDUs). All CMDUs have arrangements for treating patients at weekends. The Department continues to work with NHS England and NHS Improvement to improve patients’ access to COVID-19 treatments.

Evusheld

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Government has undertaken an assessment of which immunocompromised patients should be eligible for treatment with the drug, Evusheld, due to their lack of response to the covid-19 vaccine; and whether the Government has plans to undertake antibody testing on those individuals to assess their response.

Maggie Throup: The Department is reviewing the potential introduction of pre-exposure prophylaxis treatments, such as Evusheld. This includes the identification of appropriate patient groups, the potential deployment and administration process and assessment of antibody testing prior to treatment.

Evusheld

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to place an order for the drug, Evusheld.

Maggie Throup: We are unable to provide the information requested as it is commercially sensitive. Any public announcement on the procurement of treatments would be made after an agreement is reached with companies.

Evusheld

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason the Government is conducting tests of the drug, Evusheld, on covid-19 omicron subvariants in the context of the United States Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency having demonstrated through similar studies that that drug maintains protection.

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when the results of Government’s tests on the effectiveness of the the drug evusheld against covid-19 omicron subvariants will be published.

Maggie Throup: The Department’s Antivirals and Therapeutics Taskforce is scoping the potential for pre-exposure prophylaxis, alongside experts from the Prophylaxis Oversight Group, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and the multi-agency group RAPID C-19. As part of this evaluation, treatments must demonstrate sufficient efficacy against Omicron and new variants to avoid escape mutations. Therefore, the UKHSA is undertaking further testing on Evusheld’s effectiveness against the Omicron variant. The timing of these results is dependent on the success of the testing assays, therefore we are currently unable to confirm when these results may be published.The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has authorised Evusheld for use in the United Kingdom. However, it has noted in its Summary of Product Characteristics that no clinical data is available on the use of Evusheld against Omicron variants and there is uncertainty on the dosage and duration of effectiveness, as in vitro data has shown reduced efficacy against some variants, including Omicron.

Evusheld

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the timeframe for Evusheld being available for eligible patients following its recent MHRA approval.

Maggie Throup: We are unable to provide the information requested as it is commercially sensitive. Any public announcement on the procurement of treatments would be made after an agreement is reached with companies.

Air Pollution

Geraint Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps the Chief Medical Officer is taking to tackle air pollution problems following his speech at the Clean Air Summit in London on Thursday 17 February 2022.

Maggie Throup: The Chief Medical Officer’s 2022 annual report will focus on evidence for potential solutions to reduce the public health impacts of air pollution and offer recommendations based on this evidence. The report is due to be published in summer 2022.

Air Pollution: Health

Geraint Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has had with the Chief Medical Officer on bringing forward legislative proposals to help tackle air pollution and its associated illnesses.

Maggie Throup: While the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs lead on legislative proposals regarding air pollution, the Department of Health and Social Care continues to engage across Government on this issue. This includes discussions with the Chief Medical Officer for England.

Smoking: Reviews

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish his response to the Independent Review of Smokefree 2030 Policies; and if he will make a statement.

Maggie Throup: There are no current plans to publish a response to the Independent Review of Smokefree 2030. However, the Review and its recommendations will inform the Department’s health disparities white paper and Tobacco Control Plan, which will be published later this year.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to encourage the uptake of covid-19 (a) booster vaccinations and (b) future vaccinations.

Maggie Throup: The Department, the National Health Service and the UK Health Security Agency continue to provide advice and information to the public to increase uptake of COVID-19 vaccinations. Information materials have been translated into 28 languages and NHS England is working with employers and other groups to promote vaccination. This includes organising clinically- led question and answer sessions with groups with higher levels of vaccine hesitancy. Targeted approaches are being implemented, such as working with leading Muslim doctors and the British Islamic Medical Association to encourage eligible individuals from the Muslim community to receive their vaccinations during Ramadan via the spring vaccination programme.As of 13 April 2022, over 92% of the United Kingdom population aged 12 years old and over have received at least one dose of the vaccine, over 86% have received two doses and over 67% have received a booster or third dose. Between 21 March and 13 April, more than 1.6 million doses have been administered in England.

Tobacco

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what period will be covered by (a) the new Tobacco Control Plan for England and (b) its delivery plan.

Maggie Throup: The Tobacco Control Plan and any accompanying delivery plan remains under development and no time periods have yet been determined. The Plan will be published later this year.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 9 February 2022 to Question 92799 on Coronavirus: Vaccination, in how many of the Yellow Card cases where the patient was reported to have died shortly after vaccination did the analysis show that the event would have happened regardless of the vaccine or medicine being administered.

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 9 February 2022 to Question 92799, what the most serious side effects have been of (a) the Pfizer vaccine, (b) the Astra Zeneca vaccine and (c) the Moderna vaccine detected as a result of the analysis of Yellow Cards up to 15 December 2021; and what remedial action has been recommended to those patients affected.

Maggie Throup: As of 23 March 2022, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) received 2,075 reports of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) to COVID-19 vaccinations in which the patient died shortly after the vaccine had been administered. This is following over 140 million COVID-19 vaccinations administered in the United Kingdom. However, an ADR report associated with a fatal outcome does not mean that the vaccine caused the death. The MHRA assesses information received through the Yellow Card scheme to determine the likelihood of an association between the vaccine and any suspected ADR. This involves considering the overall pattern of reports and considering whether there are more events than would normally be expected in the general population. However, the MHRA does not assess whether an individual’s death was directly caused by a vaccine.The product information leaflets for the COVID-19 vaccines provide a list of the side effects potentially associated with the vaccines, with warnings and precautions on particular events to ensure that vaccine administrators are aware of specific advice and information. Such events include anaphylaxis for all vaccines, myocarditis and pericarditis for the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines and thrombocytopenia syndrome and neurological events for the AstraZeneca vaccine. These warnings include a description of the evidence for these events being associated with the vaccines, which will include spontaneous ADR reports, such as Yellow Cards, the signs and symptoms to be aware of and advice relating to the identification and treatment of these events, where appropriate.The MHRA keeps the safety of the COVID-19 vaccines under review and will update the information leaflets for the vaccines and communicate to patients and healthcare professionals should any new safety concerns be identified. The MHRA does not recommend remedial action to patients.

Unispace Global: Protective Clothing

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department paid £600 million to Unispace Global Ltd for the purchase of personal protective equipment in 2020; and if he will provide a breakdown of the supplies purchased under contracts awarded by the Department to Unispace Global Ltd.

Edward Argar: The Department paid £603 million to Unispace Global Ltd for the purchase of personal protective equipment in 2020 and the remaining amount in 2021. The supplies purchased under contracts awarded by Unispace Global Ltd by the Department were gloves and face masks. We are unable to provide a further breakdown of the supplies as this information is commercially sensitive.

Health Services: Finance

Geraint Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much money has been spent relating to the covid surge deal as of 24 February 2022; how many patients that funding has treated to date; and in which local areas the funding has been allocated and for what purpose.

Edward Argar: This information is not available in the format requested. Details of expenditure is not yet available as these arrangements continued until 31 March 2022, when the activity total will be reviewed and costed. As is usual with both independent sector providers and National Health Service trusts, services are commissioned by activity rather than patient numbers. In addition, this activity will be costed by each independent sector provider and not a specific location.

Protective Clothing: Finance

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 21 February 2022 to Question 121768 on Protective Clothing: Finance, in which sub-category of the total £8.7bn write down reported in the Department's annual accounts for 2020-21 were the items of PPE supplied by Ayanda and Pestfix included.

Edward Argar: The £8.7 billion of inventory impairment reported in the Department’s Annual Report and Accounts for 2020/21 includes:- £673 million relating to items assessed as not being suitable for any use - the only element of the impairment considered a loss;- £2,581 million for items not suitable for use within the health and social care sector which may be suitable for other uses and therefore held for future sale or donation;- £4,701 million reflecting the impairment recognised as a result of fluctuations in the market price of personal protective equipment between the point of purchase and the balance sheet date; and- £750 million relating to inventory which has an expiry date prior to the expected usage date and is therefore held for resale or donation.The Department is unable to provide information on which of these categories products supplied by individual contracts were attributed to as this is commercially sensitive.

Protective Clothing: Contracts

Neale Hanvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will provide the (a) number and (b) proportion of PPE items provided by each company identified through the High Priority Lane; and what the monetary value of each of those contracts was.

Edward Argar: We are unable to provide the information requested on the number and proportion of personal protective equipment (PPE) items provided by each company identified through the High Priority Lane, as it is commercially sensitive. The following table shows the monetary value for each contract for PPE processed through the high priority lane.SupplierContract valueAiya Technology£2,790,000.00Aiya Technology£14,600,000.00Aiya Technology£6,240,000.00Aventis Solutions Ltd£18,480,000.00Ayanda Capital Ltd£252,500,000.00Blueleaf Ltd£4,000,000.00Brandology Ltd£29,315,000.00Brandology Ltd£69,600,000.00Cargo Services Far East Limited£49,209,350.40Cargo Services Far East Limited£107,273,180.91Cargo Services Far East Limited£1,802,805.61Ccs Mclays Ltd£11,136,000.00Community Pharma Company Ltd£3,920,000.00Crisp Websites Ltd Ta Pestfix£32,436,000.00Crisp Websites Ltd Ta Pestfix£1,104,000.00Crisp Websites Ltd Ta Pestfix£30,000,000.00Crisp Websites Ltd Ta Pestfix£71,750,000.00Crisp Websites Ltd Ta Pestfix£1,628,700.00Crisp Websites Ltd Ta Pestfix£6,755,000.00Crisp Websites Ltd Ta Pestfix£139,900,000.00Crisp Websites Ltd Ta Pestfix£197,800.00Crisp Websites Ltd Ta Pestfix£454,500.00Crisp Websites Ltd Ta Pestfix£490,500.00Euthenia Investments Ltd£880,000.00Excalibur Healthcare Services Ltd£25,135,000.00Eyespace Eyewear Limited£1,412,829.18Gbuk Ltd£2,360,484.00Global United Trading£432,719.25Headwind Industrial (China) Ltd£2,500,000.00Hotel Logistics Ltd£3,667,957.14Hotel Logistics Ltd£1,025,000.00Hotel Logistics Ltd£615,000.00Ideal Medical Solutions Ltd£7,500,000.00Ideal Medical Solutions Ltd£7,500,000.00Ideal Medical Solutions Ltd£14,955,000.00Ideal Medical Solutions Ltd£6,090,000.00Ideal Medical Solutions Ltd£3,940,000.00Invisio Ltd£3,789,500.00Invisio Ltd£8,500,000.00Jingdong E-Commerce£8,497,272.65Jingdong E-Commerce£8,424,570.18Kpm Marine Ltd£960,000.00Liaoning Zhongqiao Overseas Exchange Co., Ltd.£12,779,067.68Maxima Markets Limited£1,850,000.00Mayfair Global Uk Ltd£256,000.00Mds Healthcare Ltd£150,000.00Mds Healthcare Ltd£2,350,000.00Medicom Healthcare Holding£307,620,000.00Medicom Healthcare Holding£299,906,668.00Meller Design Ltd£8,647,462.14Meller Design Ltd£1,080,000.00Meller Design Ltd£65,832,000.00Meller Design Ltd£2,610,000.00Meller Design Ltd£79,170,000.00Meller Design Ltd£5,990,601.73Mgp Advisory Ltd£825,000.00Monarch Acoustics Ltd£28,800,000.00New Asia Logistic Services Pte Ltd£17,010,000.00Nine United Ltd£48,545,750.30Nine United Ltd£13,937,752.96Nkd International Limited£135,000.00P14 Medical Ltd Ta Platform 14£4,192,812.00P14 Medical Ltd Ta Platform 14£116,013,156.00P14 Medical Ltd Ta Platform 14£156,291,000.00P1f Limited£738,805.98P1f Limited£7,590,000.00P1f Limited£4,020,500.00P1f Limited£7,300,000.00P1f Limited£259,000.00P1f Limited£36,116,578.62P1f Limited£25,600,000.00P1f Limited£2,413,800.00Pakan Health And Beauty Group£1,944,000.00Ppe Medpro Ltd£80,850,000.00Ppe Medpro Ltd£122,000,000.00Regal Polythene Ltd Ta Regal Disposables£44,400.00Regal Polythene Ltd Ta Regal Disposables£1,125,000.00Rehear Labs Limited£9,750,958.96Rehear Labs Limited£13,400,000.00Rehear Labs Limited£30,740,000.00Sanaclis£11,000,000.00Sanaclis£6,000,000.00Sg Recruitment Uk Ltd£23,899,000.00Sg Recruitment Uk Ltd£16,125,000.00Skinnydip Limited£12,873,400.00Summit Medical Ltd£161,058.40Technicare Ltd Ta Blyth Group£1,725,000.00The Paper Drinking Straw Company Ltd£19,877,000.00Tower Supplies£20,250,000.00Tower Supplies£20,250,000.00Uniserve Ltd£10,000,000.00Uniserve Ltd£69,600,000.00Uniserve Ltd£13,500,000.00Uniserve Ltd£7,125,000.00Uniserve Ltd£14,400,000.00Uniserve Ltd£287,960,000.00Uniserve Ltd£86,200,000.00Unispace Global Health£239,600,000.00Unispace Global Health£113,950,000.00Unispace Global Health£103,684,000.00Unispace Global Health£161,000,000.00Unispace Global Health£47,846,500.00Unispace Global Health£3,789,590.00Unispace Global Health£9,660,000.00Universal Solutions Trading Ltd£810,000.00Universal Solutions Trading Ltd£2,700,000.00Universal Solutions Trading Ltd£4,500,000.00Urathon Europe Limited£52,480,000.00Urathon Europe Limited£22,200,000.00Visage Ltd£3,375,000.00Visage Ltd£3,000,000.00Worldlink Resource£80,100,000.00Worldlink Resource£178,200,000.00Wuhan Xiaoyaoyao Pharmaceutical£63,339,414.97

Clinical Commissioning Groups: Pay

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the agreed salary range is for Chief Officers of NHS clinical commissioning groups.

Edward Argar: The NHS Commissioning Board Authority has considered pay benchmarking information and proposes three bands of payment for Chief Officers. The following table shows the three suggested pay ranges, based on the population sizes of clinical commissioning groups (CCGs).CCG levelPopulation sizePay rangeLevel 3500,000 and over£120,000 to £130,000Level 2150,000 to 499,000£105,000 to £120,000Level 1149,000 and below£90,000 to £105,000

Protective Clothing: Contracts

Neale Hanvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the oral contribution of the Paymaster General of 5 January 2022, Official Report, column 122, if he will list the more than 30 British-based companies who have signed contracts to provide 3.9 billion items of PPE including information on (a) the number and percentage of PPE items provided by each company and (b) the monetary value of each contract.

Edward Argar: The Department has signed contracts with 31 United Kingdom-based companies for 3.9 billion units of personal protective equipment (PPE), of which 2.5 billion units have been delivered so far. Currently, 247 million items are yet to be manufactured, although these orders are scheduled to be delivered by the end of March 2022. The 3.9 billion items represent 10.7% of all items ordered during the pandemic.The following table shows the companies involved in the UK Make programme. Contracts have been signed with two further UK-based companies. However, as some items are not manufactured in the UK, these products are not included in the 3.9 billion total.SupplierNumber of itemsTotal valuePercentage of all UK Make itemsAlpha Solway (Globus)100,300,000£187,419,0002.552%Blue Tree Group352,180,000£64,096,7608.959%Bolle Brands UK9,751,688£39,006,7500.248%Burberry4,000,000£660,0000.102%Burberry50,000£573,0000.001%Don & Low216,000,000£41,040,0005.495%Dräger50,000,000£87,250,0001.272%Dtr Medical Ltd1,300,000£6,500,0000.033%Duraweld Ltd5,200,000£4,212,0000.132%Elite Plastics180,000,000£9,900,0004.579%Eumar Technology105,000,000£19,950,0002.671%Honeywell70,285,000£57,939,2501.788%I Love Cosmetics (Expac)6,971,328£15,964,3410.177%Kingsbury Press13,000,000£12,870,0000.331%L J A Miers And Company Ltd13,000,000£14,950,0000.331%Lincoln Polythene1,038,250,000£46,721,25026.412%McDonald & Taylor1,155,354£5,661,2350.029%Medicom540,000,000£86,400,00013.737%Medicom122,900,000£221,220,0003.126%Numatic International Ltd390,000£975,0000.010%PFF Packaging360,023,000£18,361,1739.159%Photocentric Ltd7,670,000£15,340,0000.195%Polystar Plastics553,400,000£32,037,22814.078%Potter & Moore4,950,000£8,167,5000.126%Private White15,300,000£2,448,0000.389%Private White1,080,070£7,120,9210.027%Ramfoam Limited71,100,000£149,310,0001.809%Redwood379,460£2,078,6820.010%Siva Plastics60,000,000£6,400,0001.526%Staeger Clear Packaging Ltd24,000,000£14,640,0000.611%Survitec1,920,000£30,541,5090.049%The Royal Mint Ltd1,404,000£8,424,0000.036%Total3,930,959,900£1,218,177,598100%

Sickle Cell Diseases: Prescriptions

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to support people with sickle cell disease to access free prescriptions.

Edward Argar: There are no current plans to review or extend the prescription charge medical exemptions list to include long term conditions such as sickle cell disease. Approximately 89% of prescriptions are dispensed free of charge and there are arrangements in place to help those with the greatest need. Eligibility depends on the patient’s age, whether they are in qualifying full-time education, whether they are pregnant or have recently given birth, or whether they are in receipt of certain benefits or a war pension. Those with sickle cell disease may therefore meet the eligibility criteria for prescription charge exemptions and in receipt of free prescriptions.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when NICE plans to update the Quality Standard for COPD to take account of recent advances in research and clinical practice.

Edward Argar: In January 2022, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) conducted an exceptional surveillance review of the guideline for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Following feedback from topic experts and consultation with stakeholders, NICE decided it would not update the guideline and therefore has no current plans to update or review its quality standard. NICE will continue to monitor the evidence base in relation to its COPD guidance.

Coronavirus: Protective Clothing

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 1 February 2022 to Question 101748 on PPE Medpro: Baroness Mone, how many suppliers of PPE to which contracts were issued through the high priority lane were rated as (a) red, (b) amber or (c) green in his Department's financial assessment.

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer 1 February 2022 to Question 101748, on PPE Medpro: Baroness Mone, how many suppliers of PPE to whom contracts were issued outside the High Priority Lane were rated as (a) red, (b) amber and (c) green in his Department's financial assessment.

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many suppliers of personal protective equipment to whom contracts were issued through the high priority lane did not receive a rating either (a) red, (b) amber or (c) green in his Department's financial assessment.

Edward Argar: All offers received a rigorous financial, commercial, legal and policy assessment led by officials from various Government departments using a number of different processes to complete due diligence checks. A proportion of the assessments made included a red, amber or green rating. However, as multiple systems were used to record these checks, the information requested is not held centrally and to obtain it would incur disproportionate cost.

Earwax: Medical Treatments

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that patients across England can receive earwax removal treatment at (a) their NHS GP Surgery or (b) for free at an alternative provider when clinically necessary.

Maria Caulfield: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence no longer advises manual ear syringing due to risks associated, such as infection and trauma to the ear drum. General practitioner (GP) practices increasingly recommending self-care methods as the primary means to support the safe removal of ear wax. However, if a GP practice considers removal clinically necessary, the procedure should either be undertaken at the practice or the patient should be referred to an appropriate local NHS service.

Long Covid: Medical Treatments

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to prioritise targeted, lab-based studies to find possible treatments for those suffering from long covid.

Maria Caulfield: Over £50 million has been invested in research projects into the long term effects of COVID-19, with £38.6 million awarded to 19 projects commissioned through two research calls.The National Institute for Health Research’s (NIHR) second research call specified the need for studies to review possible treatments and interventions and develop a greater understanding of the underlying mechanisms of the disease. Six of the studies funded through this call are directly examining treatments and therapies. Further research on the long term effects of COVID-19 and providing support for those affected has been funded through the NIHR’s programme funding streams. These include a £3.5 million award to the HEAL-COVID study to develop treatments for COVID-19 which reduce the long term risks of death and disability. The NIHR continues to welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including potential treatments for post-COVID-19 syndrome. It is not usual practice to ring-fence funds for particular topics or conditions. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality.

Department for Education

Children: North of England

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the Child of the North research published in 2022.

Will Quince: The department takes an evidenced based approach and continues to incorporate the most up to date and robust research when developing policy. The department has noted the publication of the Child of the North Report and its recommendations.As the government’s Levelling Up White Paper and recent Schools White Paper outline, the department is committed to levelling up education standards and increasing capacity in the parts of the country that need this most.The government’s special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and alternative provision (AP) Green Paper, published on Tuesday 29 March, sets out its vision for a single, national SEND and AP system that will introduce new standards in the quality of support given to children across education, health and care.

Treasury

Public Finance: Scotland

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an impact assessment of the potential effect of measures included in the Spring Statement 2022 on Scotland.

Lucy Frazer: The Chancellor’s Spring Statement on 23 March 2022 announced a number of measures to support households and businesses in every region and nation of the UK, and to relieve the immediate pressure on our cost of living. It set out that taxes are being cut, that debt is falling, and that public spending is increasing.Raising the National Insurance thresholds is a tax cut for 2.4 million workers in Scotland, saving the typical employee over £330 a year. As a result of a cut to the basic rate of Income Tax for savings income in 2024, taxpayers in Scotland will see benefits worth £3 million. As other Income Tax rates in Scotland are devolved, the Scottish Government will receive an extra £350 million in 2024-25 due to the cut in the basic rate of Income Tax for non-savings, non-dividends income.Further support for UK households and businesses included the £1,000 increase to the Employment Allowance, which will benefit around half a million businesses across the UK, as well as the cuts to fuel duty on petrol and diesel, by 5p per litre, for the next 12 months.In addition to this UK-wide action, the Chancellor also announced that the UK Government is providing the Scottish Government with an additional £45 million through the Barnett formula in 2022-23, as a result of measures announced in the Spring Statement.

Electric Vehicles: Charging Points

Afzal Khan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department plans to offer a VAT reduction to owners of electric vehicles who charge their cars at public charging points.

Lucy Frazer: In order to keep costs down for families, the supply of electricity for domestic use, including charging an electric vehicle (EV) at home, attracts the 5 per cent reduced rate of VAT. However, electricity supplied at EV charging points in public places is subject to the standard 20 per cent rate of VAT.Expanding the existing relief would come at a cost. VAT makes a significant contribution towards the public finances, raising around £130 billion in 2019-20, and helps fund the Government's priorities including the NHS, schools, and defence. Any loss in tax revenue would have to be balanced by a reduction in public spending, increased borrowing, or increased taxation elsewhere. Although there are no current plans to change the VAT treatment of electricity supplied at public EV charge points, the Government is committed to supporting the transition to zero emission vehicles to help the UK meet its net-zero obligations. The Government has committed £3.5 billion since 2020 to support the transition to zero emission vehicles, which funds targeted vehicle grants and the rollout of charging infrastructure.

Public Finance: South West

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what impact assessment was made of the potential effect of measures included in the Spring Statement 2022 on the South West Region of England.

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an impact assessment of the potential effect of measures included in the Spring Statement 2022 on the South East.

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an impact assessment of the potential effect of measures included in the Spring Statement 2022 the Humber.

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an impact assessment of the potential effect of measures included in the Spring Statement 2022 on the North East.

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an assessment of the effect of provisions included in the Spring Statement 2022 on the North West.

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an assessment of the effect of provisions included in the Spring Statement 2022 on the east of England.

Mr Simon Clarke: The Chancellor’s Spring Statement on 23 March 2022 announced a number of measures to support households and businesses in every region and nation of the UK and to relieve the immediate pressure on the cost of living. This includes cutting National Insurance by aligning the Primary Threshold and Lower Profits Limit with the income tax personal allowance from July 2022 – a tax cut worth over £6 billion – and cutting the duty rate on petrol and diesel by 5p per litre for a year, saving the average UK car driver around £100. It sets out that taxes are being cut, debt is falling and public spending is increasing, for the benefit of every region and nation in the UK.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Democratic Republic of Congo: Armed Conflict

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with representatives of the governments of (a) Democratic Republic of the Congo, (b) Uganda, (c) Rwanda, (d) other states neighbouring the Democratic Republic of the Congo and (e) UN MONUSCO in relation to (i) recent violence within the Democratic Republic of the Congo and (ii) allegations of destabilising support for rebel groups within the Democratic Republic of the Congo by neighbouring states.

Vicky Ford: The security situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is concerning. The UK is committed to supporting efforts to build stability and reduce violence in the country. In recent weeks our regional network has raised our concerns about the recent increase in violence, protection of civilians and increased movement of armed groups with the governments of DRC, Uganda and Rwanda, as well as the leadership of the UN Peacekeeping Mission, MONUSCO.Our Heads of Mission to DRC and Rwanda have met with DRC President Tshisikedi and the acting Rwandan Foreign Minister respectively, and the Minister for Africa has met with the Ugandan Foreign Minister. At the UN Security Council on 29 March, we urged the Governments of DRC and Uganda to increase their coordination with MONUSCO, to ensure the protection of civilians and the safety and security of UN personnel and humanitarian workers. We will continue to closely monitor the situation and engage bilaterally to improve the security situation.

Sanctions: Russia

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of implementation of secondary sanctions against organisations and individuals undertaking economic or military activity with sanctioned Russian entities and individuals.

James Cleverly: We do not speculate on future sanctions, but have made clear that we will continue to ratchet up the pressure on Putin. In response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine we have announced an unprecedented package of sanctions. We have sanctioned over 1400 individuals and businesses since the invasion. UK sanctions apply to any individual or entity in the UK, and to any UK individual or entity globally. The UK's sanctions therefore apply to multinationals' UK operations, as well as any relevant economic activity involving a UK person.

India: Visas

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations he has made to his Indian counterpart regarding visa waiting times for UK citizens wishing to travel to India; and what steps he is taking to ensure the process can be quicker.

Vicky Ford: During her visit to India on 31 March, the Foreign Secretary raised the UK's exclusion from India's list of countries available for e-visas with her Indian counterpart, External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, and stressed the importance of restoring e-visa availability for business and tourist travel.

Ministry of Defence

Nuclear Submarines: Crew

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the number of submariners who have received radiation doses in excess of safe limits in each of the last 10 years.

Jeremy Quin: No submariners have received radiation doses in excess of safe limits in any of the last ten years.

Department for Work and Pensions

State Retirement Pensions: Age

Apsana Begum: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the call by Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI) women for fair and adequate compensation; and what steps she plans to take in response to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman report on the communication of changes to state pension age.

Guy Opperman: It would not be appropriate to comment on the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s report whilst the investigation is ongoing; and section 7(2) of the Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967 states that Ombudsman investigations “shall be conducted in private”. This a multi staged process and the report published on 20 July 2021 concluded stage-one of the investigation.

Cost of Living

Ian Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what inter-ministerial group exists to discuss (a) poverty and (b) matters relating to the cost of living; when that group last met; and which departments are represented in its membership.

David Rutley: We are committed to working across Government to support households, which is why we convened the cost of living Inter-Ministerial Group to ensure a cross-Government understanding of the cost of living challenges particular for those on lower incomes and to encourage a joined up approach to future work in this area. Ministers have had extensive and wide-ranging discussions around the cost of living and will continue to do so in the future. The Inter-Ministerial Group last formally met on 9 November 2021.Ministers and officials from across Government have constant discussion on policy development and implementation, including ahead of the announcement on help with energy bills on 3rd March and the Spring Statement on 23rd March 2022.

Personal Independence Payment: Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that Personal Independent Payment assessments take account of complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Chloe Smith: Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is focused on an individual’s functional needs arising from a long-term health condition or disability, not the health condition or disability itself. Health Professionals undertaking assessments on behalf of the Department must be registered practitioners who have also met requirements around training and competence. All Health Professionals (HPs) receive training on how to identify the impact of mental health conditions on claimants. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is part of the Continuing Professional Development aimed at updating HPs on key clinical topics. HPs have access to a range of resources, as well as to experienced clinicians to support them in assessing individuals with conditions with which they may not be familiar. In addition, Mental Health Function Champions support HPs by providing additional expertise about mental health, cognitive, developmental and learning disabilities that can be referred to at any time during the assessment process.

Carer's Allowance

Beth Winter: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to make an assessment of the potential merits of extending eligibility for carer’s allowance to include people to who are claiming other social security benefits including state retirement pension.

Beth Winter: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of amending the eligibility criteria for Carer’s Allowance for people who are claiming other social security benefits, including state retirement pension.

Chloe Smith: There are already circumstances in which people can receive Carer’s Allowance and other benefits. For example, around 239,000 carer households on Universal Credit receive both the Carer Element (worth around an additional £2,000 a year) and Carer’s Allowance. Specifically on pensioner carers, although there is no upper age limit to claiming Carer’s Allowance, it cannot normally be paid with the State Pension. It has been a long held feature of the UK’s benefit system, under successive Governments, that where someone is entitled to two benefits for the same contingency, then whilst there may be entitlement to both benefits, only one will be paid to avoid duplication for the same need. Although entitlement to State Pension and Carer’s Allowance arise in different circumstances they are nevertheless designed for the same contingency – as an income replacement.  Carer’s Allowance replaces income where the carer has given up the opportunity of full-time employment in order to care for a severely disabled person, while State Pension replaces income in retirement. For this reason, social security rules operate to prevent them being paid together, to avoid duplicate provision for the same need. However, if a carer’s State Pension is less than Carer's Allowance, State Pension is paid and topped up with Carer's Allowance to the basic weekly rate of Carer's Allowance which is currently £69.70. Where Carer’s Allowance cannot be paid, the person will keep underlying entitlement to the benefit. This gives access to the additional amount for carers in Pension Credit of £38.85 a week and potentially other means-tested support. Around 118,000 people are receiving the Carer Premium with their Pension Credit. And even if a pensioner’s income is above the limit for Pension Credit, they may still be able to receive Housing Benefit.

Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

Beth Winter: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans she has to reform the assessment processes for Employment Support Allowance, Universal Credit Limited Capability for Work and Personal Independence Payment.

Chloe Smith: In the Health and Disability Green Paper we put forward a number of proposals for reforming health assessments. We received over 4,500 responses to the consultation and we will bring forward detailed proposals in a White Paper later this year.

Universal Credit: Self-employed

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 22 March 2022 to Question 138303, whether there is statistical evidence available to show (a) how the minimum income floor has enabled claimants to increase their self-employed through developing their self-employment and (b) that the minimum income floor prevents claimants from under-declaring self-employed earnings; and for what the evidential basis is for the minimum income floor to achieve that objective.

Mims Davies: The requested information is not held.

Jobcentres

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she provide details of each Jobcentre Plus in the UK, broken down by (a) permanent and (b) temporary job centres.

Mims Davies: Please see the attached spreadsheet for details of the permanent and temporary DWP sites. Spreadsheet (xlsx, 80.3KB)

COP26

Question

Sarah Olney: To ask the President of COP26, what recent steps he has taken to help coordinate a whole of Government response to tackling the climate and ecological emergency ahead of the COP15 Biodiversity Conference.

Rebecca Pow: The COP15 meeting of the Convention on Biological Diversity is a crucial moment in 2022 to ensure global action on tackling biodiversity loss by 2030. The UK government is taking a wholly joined up approach to delivering world-leading climate & ecological commitments through our Net Zero Strategy, the Environment Act, and our Environmental Improvement Plan, including an historic target to halt the decline in species abundance by 2030.

Question

Paula Barker: To ask the President of COP26, what assessment he has made of the effect of the recent rise in gas prices on the commitments agreed at COP26.

Greg Hands: Our exposure to high gas prices demonstrates the link between climate change, energy security and vulnerability caused by our global dependence on fossil fuels. Now more than ever, we must urgently work together to accelerate the shift to clean power generation.

Question

Ms Anum Qaisar: To ask the President of COP26, to ask the President of COP26, if he will hold discussions with his international counterparts on the potential merits of prioritising discussion of food sustainability at COP27.

Rebecca Pow: Food production and environmental protection are two sides of the same coin. We recognise the impact of climate change on food security if we don’t act now. We have been engaging with our international counterparts on progressing the successes of COP26, including financial commitments and actions to reduce environmental harm, and support livelihoods and food security. Looking towards COP27, we have already engaged with host nation Egypt and others to consider how we progress this.

Question

Mick Whitley: To ask the President of COP26, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of fracking on delivering the UK's COP26 commitment to tackling climate change.

Greg Hands: The government has commissioned the British Geological Survey to advise on the latest scientific evidence around shale gas extraction.This in no way changes our commitment to achieving net zero, and we remain guided by the science.

Question

Grahame Morris: To ask the President of COP26, what assessment he has made of the potential contribution of domestic use of (a) renewables and (b) energy efficiency improvements to meeting COP26 objectives.

Greg Hands: The government’s Heat and Buildings Strategy set out how accelerating investment in energy efficiency and low carbon heating are essential to meeting near-term carbon budgets, decarbonising the economy by 2050 and delivering on the COP26 objectives.

Question

Mr Barry Sheerman: What assessment he has made of the effect of the announcements in the Spring Statement 2022 on prospects for meeting COP26 objectives.

Alok Sharma: Since March 2021, through the 2021 Budget and Spending Review, the Government will have committed a total of £30 billion of domestic investment for the green industrial revolution. And my Right Honourable Friend, the Chancellor built on this in his recent Spring Statement by setting out measures for exemptions on business rates for green technology, a 100% relief on low-carbon heat networks and extending VAT relief from 5% to 0% on the installation of energy saving materials.

Question

Chris Green: To ask the President of COP26, what progress he made at COP26 on reducing the use of coal.

Alok Sharma: At COP26, all parties agreed to phase down the use of coal, the first ever direct reference to coal in UN climate decision text. The Global Coal to Clean Power Transition Statement gained 77 signatures from countries, subnationals, and organisations, and the Powering Past Coal Alliance grew to 165 members. And there were significant financial commitments, with international partners agreeing to mobilise over $20 billion to support developing countries in the transition from coal to clean energy.

Question

Philip Dunne: To ask the President of COP26, what recent discussions he has had with the COP President-designate and states party to the UNFCCC on the implications for the COP27 agenda of current trends in global energy markets.

Alok Sharma: Colleagues in the COP Unit and I speak very regularly with our Egyptian partners on a range of matters.Last month I also attended and spoke to Energy and Climate Ministers at the International Energy Agency’s annual Ministerial where Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine and global energy markets were front and centre of discussions.

Home Office

Asylum: Applications

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the average cost of processing an adult male asylum seeker in the UK under existing arrangements; and if she will publish a breakdown of that cost.

Kevin Foster: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Clearsprings Ready Homes: Contracts

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department has taken to ensure value for money in respect of contracted-out services to Clearsprings Ready Homes.

Kevin Foster: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Visas: English Language

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the basis is for granting an exception to applicants from (a) Barbados, (b) Jamaica and (c) Trinidad and Tobago from a requirement to take International English Language Testing System exams for UK Visas and educational programmes; for what reason that exception does apply to applicants from Nigeria; how many Nigerians applied for the International English Language Testing System over the last five years; what the pass rate was in each of those years; and on what basis the charge for that test was calculated.

Kevin Foster: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Asylum: Rwanda

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the cost of processing a male asylum seeker in Rwanda under her proposed arrangements; and if she will publish a breakdown of those costs.

Tom Pursglove: Any person who has arrived in the UK illegally, or by dangerous or unnecessary methods from safe countries since 1 January 2022, will be considered for relocation to Rwanda.The UK is providing substantial investment to boost the development of Rwanda, including jobs, skills and opportunities to benefit both migrants and host communities. This includes an initial investment of £120m as part of a new Economic Transformation and Integration Fund.The UK is also funding the processing costs for each person relocated, such as caseworkers, legal advice, translators, accommodation, food, healthcare, and for those granted protection, a comprehensive integration package to help them put down roots and start a new life.Every person’s needs are different, but we anticipate the amount would be comparable to processing costs incurred in the UK. Funding is only provided while a person remains in Rwanda.

Dungavel House Immigration Removal Centre

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, where asylum seekers are sent once their claims for asylum are processed at Dungavel House Immigration Removal Centre.

Tom Pursglove: We operate the immigration removal estate in a flexible manner and in line with the Short Term Holding Facility (STHF) Rules 2018 and the Detention Centre Rules 2001, as appropriate. In order to support the management of the arrival of migrants by boat, we have temporarily accommodated people under the provisions of the STHF Rules 2018, in a small number of immigration removal centres (IRCs) including Dungavel House. Dungavel IRC is only considered when capacity is exceeded at other facilities, or contingencies are exhausted and has not been used for processing Channel migrants since November 2021. Following initial processing and screening, asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute are able to access statutory support and accommodation from the Home Office in accordance with the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 whilst their application for asylum is being considered. Individuals who are eligible for such support are provided with transportation to asylum accommodation. The Home Office publishes statistics on immigration detention in the ‘Immigration Statistics Quarterly Release’. This includes data on people: Entering detention by initial place of detention in table Det_02a of the ‘Detention summary tables’.Leaving detention by last place of detention published in table Det_04c of the ‘Detention summary tables’.In detention by current place of detention in table Det_03a of the ‘Detention summary tables’.Entering, leaving and in detention by asylum related-cases in table Det_01 of the ‘Detention summary tables’. Data on those entering detention, by place of detention, relate to the place of initial detention. An individual who moves from one part of the detention estate to another will not be counted as entering any subsequent place of detention. Last place of detention does not show where an individual spent their time in detention. In some cases, an individual may have spent a period of time detained elsewhere before being moved to their last place of detention. Asylum-related cases refer to those where there has been an asylum claim at some stage prior or during detention. This will include asylum seekers whose asylum claims have been refused, and who have exhausted any rights of appeal, those returned under third country provisions, as well as those granted asylum/protection, but detained for other reasons (such as criminality).

Visas: Afghanistan

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of offering a fee-waiver to people applying to come to the UK from Afghanistan using the Appendix FM route.

Kevin Foster: Those applying to come to the UK from Afghanistan using the Appendix FM route can apply for an overseas fee waiver.The guidance for the discretion to waive a fee from overseas is being revised and is not currently operational. We expect to publish the new guidance by the Summer of 2022. The delay in publishing the new guidance has been caused by the need to develop a new online application system to meet the additional requirements of the affordability test for overseas applicants.An applicant can still apply for a fee waiver, but their application will be put on hold pending the revised guidance. Consideration will be given as to whether the need to travel to the UK is urgent, and if so, the fee waiver application will be assessed. Each urgent case will be considered on its individual merits.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Regional Planning and Development: Advertising

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what the cost has been to his Department of the recent advertising campaign for levelling up (a) in newspapers and (b) on billboards.

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what the planned duration is of his Department's advertising and marketing campaign for levelling up; and what the cost of that campaign will be.

Neil O'Brien: The Levelling Up campaign ran from February to April 2022 and has now ended. We will be publishing its expenditure as part of routine transparency commitments in due course.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities: Correspondence

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what proportion of Ministerial replies are sent to hon. Members from his Department within 20 working days as suggested in the Guide to Handling Correspondence, published by the Cabinet Office in July 2021.

Eddie Hughes: The Government attaches great importance to the effective and timely handling of correspondence from MPs, either directly or on behalf of their constituents. Data on the timeliness of responses to correspondence from MPs and Peers is published on Gov.uk here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/data-on-responses-to-correspondence-from-mps-and-peers.Data for 2021 will be published by the Cabinet Office in due course.

Department for International Trade

TRIPS Agreement

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment has been made of supporting a temporary waiver that includes all forms of intellectual property, including (a) medical tools, (b) treatments and (c) diagnostics on TRIPS at the WTO.

Penny Mordaunt: HM Government remains open to initiatives that could help with equitable vaccine distribution and their prompt administration. However, there is no evidence that waiving intellectual property protections would advance this objective. Rather, it would dismantle the framework which has and will continue to develop Covid-19 products, like vaccines, which are positively contributing to the global pandemic response, enabling vaccination of key workers like transport workers and medical staff both domestically and internationally.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Emergency Calls: Power Failures

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to help ensure that (a) telecoms and (b) network providers meet Ofcom's requirement to have at least one solution that enables access to emergency organisations for a minimum of one hour in the event of a power outage in the premises.

Julia Lopez: Ofcom, the independent telecoms regulator, has issued guidance to telecoms companies to explain how they can meet their regulatory obligations following the transition from the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) to IP-based telephony.It is ultimately the role of Ofcom to ensure telecoms companies and network providers are compliant with this guidance, however, both DCMS and Ofcom meet regularly with telecoms companies and network providers to understand their migration processes and ensure that they meet their regulatory obligations.

Computer Networks: Russia

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has had discussions with representatives of telecommunication firms on preventing potential Russian interference in telecommunications networks.

Julia Lopez: The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, as the Lead government department for telecommunications, works closely with the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure and with telecoms owners, operators and regulator to assess and promote the security and resilience of the sector. DCMS disseminates best practice guidance, products and policy advice to further enhance the sector's security and resilience.The NCSC, as the UK’s technical authority on cyber, engages closely with the sector to ensure it is alert to any evolving threats, is aware of the support available from NCSC and is taking the necessary actions to strengthen security postures.Recent legislation will also enable the government to protect our public telecoms networks and services against security threats, both now and for the future. The Telecommunications (Security) Act 2021 introduces a stronger security framework placing new security duties on public telecoms providers and new national security powers to address the risks posed by high risk vendors. The National Security and Investment Act 2021 protects the UK economy, including the telecoms sector, by giving the government powers to scrutinise and intervene in acquisitions which raise national security concerns by blocking or setting conditions where necessary.

Channel Four: Privatisation

Chris Elmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential economic impact of the privatisation of Channel 4.

Julia Lopez: The Government consulted extensively on a change of ownership of Channel 4, and the views and evidence gathered from a wide range of stakeholders has informed the Government’s assessment and wider policy-making.Following this consultation, the Secretary of State has come to a decision that, although Channel 4 as a business is currently performing well, public ownership is holding it back in the face of a rapidly-changing and competitive media landscape. The Secretary of State has consulted with Cabinet colleagues on that decision.The Government will set out its plan for Channel 4 in a White Paper shortly. The Government will also publish a response to its consultation.

Semiconductor Devices: Manufacturing Industries

Jane Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to help support and maintain British-owned semi-conductor manufacturing in the UK.

Chris Philp: The Government recognises the importance of semiconductor technology to the global economy. Semiconductors are a fundamental enabling technology for electronic devices and the UK holds current and historical strengths in certain aspects of the semiconductor supply chain, notably design.The Government is reviewing its approach to the UKs domestic semiconductor sector, working with industry experts and representative bodies, in order to protect and grow the UKs domestic capabilities. We are also collaborating closely with international partners, recognising that the supply chains for semiconductor products are incredibly complex, and these issues cannot be solved by the UK alone.

Public Service Broadcasting: Children

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that young listeners and viewers benefit from the Public Service Broadcasting Advisory Panel in the context of a children's media representative not being appointed to that panel.

Julia Lopez: The Government is supportive of a modern system of public service broadcasting (PSB) that remains relevant and can continue to meet the needs of UK audiences of all ages in the future. That is why we are conducting a strategic review of PSB – to work out how best to achieve this in light of the challenges the sector is currently facing.Advice from the Government’s expert PSB Advisory Panel is one element of that review, which draws on multiple sources including Ofcom’s latest review of PSB (‘Small Screen: Big Debate’), and reports from the Select Committees in both Houses of Parliament. Panel members have a wide range of experience and expertise in broadcasting and related industries, including children’s media.

Young Audiences Content Fund

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of reinstating the Young Audiences Content Fund.

Julia Lopez: The pilot Young Audiences Content Fund was allocated Licence Fee underspend to test a new way of financing public service TV content for a three-year period. This three-year period concluded on 31 March 2022. As planned a full evaluation will now take place to determine the impact of the Young Audiences Content Fund on the children’s television industry and the provision and plurality of public service content for young audiences across the UK.The potential for any further investment of public funding will be assessed against the Fund evaluation and alongside future public service broadcasting needs.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Nature Conservation

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish the compilation of evidence that underpins the Benyon Review and Nature Recovery Green Paper.

Rebecca Pow: The initial proposals set out in the Nature Recovery Green Paper are based on publicly available evidence and advice from our experts. The purpose of the Green Paper consultation is to gather views and evidence that will enable us to develop policies to secure nature’s recovery.Alongside the Nature Recovery Green Paper, we published a summary of the Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) Review Working Group's findings, as well as guidance on regulation 9 of the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017. The summary of findings of the HRA Working Group set out how the working group approached their review, the principles which guided the review, and how they sought evidence. It provides the background to chapter 3.2.1 of the Nature Recovery Green Paper, which reflects its findings. We are not currently planning to publish further evidence underpinning the Nature Recovery Green Paper or the HRA review led by Lord Benyon.

Pet Travel Scheme: Dogs

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of undertaking visual checks to confirm that dogs entering the UK match pet passports.

Victoria Prentis: We operate one of the most rigorous and robust pet travel checking regimes in Europe. All non-commercial dogs entering Great Britain on approved routes (every route other than Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland and the Crown Dependencies) under the pet travel rules undergo 100% documentary and identity checks by authorised pet checkers. To enter Great Britain dogs must have been implanted with a microchip or have a legible tattoo imprinted prior to 3 July 2011. A dog’s identity is checked by ensuring that the microchip or tattoo details correspond to the details in the dog’s documentation. Carriers can refer suspected non-compliances to the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA). APHA staff are highly trained to deal with intercepted shipments. APHA works collaboratively with Border Force and other operational partners at ports, airports and inland, sharing intelligence to enforce the pet travel rules, disrupt illegal imports, safeguard the welfare of animals and seize non-compliant animals. The Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill was introduced in Parliament on 8 June 2021 and will progress as soon as parliamentary time allows. The Bill allows us to further protect the welfare of pets by introducing restrictions to crack down on the low welfare movements of pets into Great Britain and includes powers to introduce new restrictions on pet travel and the commercial import of pets on welfare grounds, via secondary legislation.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Statistics

Geraint Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to Defra group breaches of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics between January 2009 and February 2018, what steps he is taking to avoid future breaches of that code.

Geraint Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the 35 breaches by his Department of the Code of Practice for Statistics between January 2009 and July 2021.

Victoria Prentis: There have been 35 breaches of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics by Defra (24) and associated bodies (11) since January 2009. The most common reasons for breaches of the Code have been timing (i.e. publications not released at 9.30am) and pre-release access (i.e. publication shared with ineligible individuals before publication). The Head of Profession for Statistics is responsible for the release and content of statistics in the Department. All breaches are individually reviewed and reported to the UK Statistics Authority, including the impact of the breach and corrective actions to prevent re-occurrence. Details of Defra group breaches can be found at:Defra group breaches of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)  Number of breaches20091201012011120121201352014420153201642017320184201932020220213

Farm Inspection and Regulation Review

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the Government plans to respond to the Dame Glenys Stacey's 2018 Farm Inspection and Regulation Review; and whether any of the recommendations of that Review have been implemented as of 30 March 2022.

Victoria Prentis: The Government has not published a formal response to Dame Glenys Stacey’s Farm Inspection and Regulation Review. However, as we set out in the Agricultural Transition Plan, published in November 2020, we have been using the learnings and recommendations made in the Review to engage with farmers and other experts to design and reform the farming regulatory system. We have made changes to the way farmers are regulated currently, building on recommendations in the Dame Glenys Stacey Review. We are taking a more proportionate approach to farm payment penalties following a cross compliance inspection, including making more use of warning letters where there is no risk to public or animal health or damage to the environment. We are also providing solutions to improve slurry management through the new Farming Investment Fund and increasing Environment Agency inspections from 400 to at least 4000 a year by 2023, which will provide a proportionate, risk-based focus to address pollution from sources such as slurry. The Dame Glenys Stacey Review’s most prominent recommendation was for the establishment of a single farm regulator. The Nature Recovery Green Paper, published in March 2022, set out that we are exploring options to organise the Defra group to best deliver long-term targets and commitments to protect and restore the environment, while developing the capability to respond to new and emerging challenges. As part of this exercise, we will assess the recommendation of the Dame Glenys Stacey Review to deliver coherent regulation for the farming sector. We will continue to use the Dame Glenys Stacey’s Review as we work with farmers and other experts to ensure that the regulatory system supports people to meet standards and enables farms to be sustainable, resilient and competitive. This work will continue throughout the Agricultural Transition period.

Poultry: Animal Welfare

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will ban the use of cages for laying hens.

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to his Department's Action Plan for Animal Welfare, published on 12 May 2021, when he plans to examine the use of cages for laying hens.

Jo Churchill: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 23 March 2022 to the hon. Member for Brighton, Kemptown, PQ UIN 129858.

Livestock: Animal Welfare

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the European Union's decision to ban the use of cages for farm animals in the European Union by 2027.

Jo Churchill: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 23 March 2022 to the hon. Member for Brighton, Kemptown, PQ UIN 129860.

Poultry: Animal Welfare

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made representations to the devolved Administrations in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland on the use of banning cages for laying hens.

Jo Churchill: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 23 March 2022 to the hon. Member for Brighton, Kemptown, PQ UIN 129859.

Furs: Import Controls

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if the Government will bring forward legislative proposals early in the next parliamentary session to ban the import and sale of real animal fur; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the Government plans to publish the responses received to its call for evidence on the fur trade, which closed in June 2021.

Jo Churchill: Now we have left the EU, the Government is able to explore potential action in relation to animal fur, in line with the Government’s commitment to improving animal welfare standards as set out in the Action Plan for Animal Welfare. We continue to gather information and speak to a range of interested parties about the issues involved. We are reviewing the evidence gathered both from our Call for Evidence and wider engagement with the fur trade and stakeholders, and a summary of responses will be published soon.

Air Pollution

Geraint Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2022 to Question 102540 on Air Pollution, what plans he has to publish the results of the holistic review of the way his Department communicates air quality information and advice; and what his timetable is for that publication.

Jo Churchill: I refer to my response to PQ 102540. The steering group is developing the work programme and milestones will be clarified in due course.

Air Pollution

Geraint Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what changes have been made to his Department’s contractual arrangements for monitoring particulate matter, PM2.5 and PM10, on the Automatic Urban and Rural Monitoring Network since 1 January 2021; and on what dates those changes were made.

Jo Churchill: The awarding of Automatic Urban and Rural Network (AURN) monitoring contracts are undertaken by the Environment Agency on behalf of Defra. Both PM10 and PM2.5 measurements form part of the AURN and the Automatic London Network. These contracts were competitively retendered, together with the ‘Central Management and Co-Ordination Unit’ and ‘Quality Assurance and Quality Control roles’ as a single tender and awarded as separate lots on 01/10/2021 for three years. Details of the organisations awarded are provided below and can be obtained from the Government’s Contracts Finder at Search results - Contracts Finder. Lot 1 Bureau Veritas UK Ltd - Automatic Urban and Rural Network Management (Central Management and Co-Ordination Unit (CMCU)) – Management of National AURN sites (Lot 1)Lot 2 - Ricardo AEA Ltd - Automatic Urban and Rural Network Management (AURN) Lot 2 Quality Assurance and Quality Control of National AURN sites (QAQC of LOT 1 sites)Lot 3 - Bureau Veritas UK Ltd - Automatic London Network (ALN) Central Management and Co-Ordination Unit (CMCU) for London and South East affiliated sites (Lot 3)Lot 4 - National Physical Laboratory - Automatic Urban and Rural Network Management (Lot 4 - AURN - Quality Assurance and Quality Control of 16 ALN sites (QAQC of LOT 3 sites)Lot 5 - Ricardo AEA Ltd - Lot 5 Ozone Audits only (6 monthly audit work)

Ammonia

Geraint Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the impact of the agreements reached in October 2021 and January 2022 between CF Industries or its subsidiaries and major CO2 users on the amount of primary emissions of ammonia in the UK, in tonnes.

Jo Churchill: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 18 March 2022, PQ UIN 137953.